COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTIONThis is a dopplebock high-gravity lager. This one is big, black and sweet. It’s malty character is derived from two caramel malts along with Munich malt to create the smoothest high-gravity beer this side of the pond.

UPDATED: MAR 4, 2015 On tap, poured into a sampler mug. The aroma is strong of bread crust and toast with a light note of nuts and toffee that strengthen. By the end, aromas of honey and citrus are just as dominant as the bread crust. The beer is a dark orange red color with a tan, dense foam head that retains a medium ring and a moderate amount of light lace. The taste is a medium high sweet and a light bitter. It’s slick and oily with a foamy carbonation. The medium full body is toasty and malty with lots of cooked toffee flavor. The finish smooth with a chocolate touch added to the toffee, as well as alight dough quality. The aftertaste has a light candy and/or cooked sugar note and is light cloying.

12 ounce bottle into tulip glass, bottled in 9/2014. Pours crystal clear nearly opaque dark brown color with a 2 finger dense and rocky tan head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings around the glass, with some moderate streaming carbonation retaining the head. Aromas of caramel, toffee, toast, dark bread, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, nuttiness, raisin, plum, fig, herbal, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Nice and pleasant aromas of dark/roasted/bready malt, dark fruit, and light earthy hop notes; with solid strength. Taste of caramel, toffee, toast, dark bread, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, brown sugar, nuttiness, raisin, plum, fig, herbal, and yeast/roasted earthiness. Fair amount of herbal/roast bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of caramel, toffee, toast, dark bread, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, brown sugar, nuttiness, raisin, plum, fig, and herbal/roasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Good complexity and robustness of dark/roasted/bready malt, dark fruit, and earthy hop flavors; with a solid bitterness/sweetness balance and some light cloying bitterness on the finish. Pretty clean on lager flavor with no overly estery notes present. Medium carbonation and body; with a smooth, fairly creamy/sticky, and lightly bready mouthfeel that is okay. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a slight warming present after the finish. Overall this is a pretty solid doppelbock style. Good balance and complexity of dark/roast/bready malt, dark fruit, and earthy hop flavors; and smooth to sip on for the big ABV. The cloying bitterness/stickiness definitely killed the mouthfeel, but there was some good malt complexity overall. A pleasantly enjoyable offering.

PerSonally I like this a lot for a beer in my back pocket. For the style it is lacking a bit. However, I wouldn’t turn it down. Deep red purple coloring. Flavor is light not as heavy as it could be. Highly deceptive as far as abv. Watch out

Poured from bottle into British pub glass. Malty aroma, malty, and lots of caramel. Not black, but clear dark brown. Head was a nice two finger tan head. Nice lacing. A nice rather heavy medium sweetness. Thin body, easy drinking. Hardly any alcohol aftertaste. A very refreshing lager. Will drink many more. Overall an enjoyable Dopplebock at 9%.

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